Maddie and Ethan
by ibelieveinguardianangels
Summary: Maddie and Ethan are the children of Sherlock and Molly. This is a series of alternate universe Sherlolly fics including one or both of the children. Not all H/C. (Sorry for the bad summary).
1. Chapter 1

**This is, obviously, alternate universe and therefore Sherlock may be a little out of character. I was thinking of possibly making 'Maddie and Ethan' a series of one shots, but I wanted to see if you liked it first.**

 **Sorry that this chapter is so short, it's sort of an introduction.**

 **Sorry for any mistakes.**

It had been a rough day at the morgue and poor Molly was exhausted. She could hear the riot escaping the slightly open door to 221B as she trudged tiredly up the 17 steps to the apartment. Her back was aching from being hunched over dead bodies all day and all she wanted was to curl up with her husband and watch television.

As she reached the open door and peeked through, she couldn't stifle the laugh that bubbled out of her. Lying on the floor of the sitting room was Sherlock. 4 year old Ethan was holding down his legs by lying his entire body weight across them and 6 year old Maddie was sitting on his chest.

Maddie's small fingers were dancing over Sherlock's thin upper body and the poor detective was squirming, trying to escape them as he laughed and giggled.

Poor Sherlock was red in the face. He had tears of laughter rolling down his cheeks as he tried to fight off the hands of the children. Looking towards Molly, he pleaded with his eyes.

"Okay," Molly laughed, entering the room fully and choosing to help her ticklish husband, "let him up."

She plucked Ethan up from Sherlock's legs, watching Maddie as she followed suit. Sherlock, weak and exhausted from his giggle-inducing assault, dragged himself from the floor, breathing heavily and wiping away the tears.

"Little terrors." He grumbled, but took a child on each of his legs and placed a kiss to both of their cheeks. " _My_ little terrors."

 **Thank you for reading.**

 **Please let me know what you think and if you feel that I should continue this or not.**

 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you for the reviews and feedback :) I have a few chapters already written and ready to be posted, here is the second one.**

 **Sorry for any mistakes.**

"Go on," Molly prompted, gently pushing the children in the direction of their father, "ask daddy." Molly watched them, ensuring they did so before dropping the shopping bags onto the floor in the kitchen, beginning to unpack them. Sherlock had been in a bit of a black mood for the past few days and the children were a little wary of him. He was always unpredictable when the depression began to set in. The man in question rolled over as the children approached him and his rumbling baritone resonated throughout the flat and into the kitchen.

"Ask daddy what?" He raised an eyebrow at the children.

Maddie was the first the speak;

"Since you've been feeling sad," She began, the words causing Sherlock to frown a little, "Ethan and I thought, maybe, you would like to help us build a den?"

"A den?" Sherlock repeated, his eyebrows knitting together in a frown as he glanced towards Molly who chose that moment to enter the room.

"Yes." Molly smiled. "The children would like the build a den using the couch cushions and some bedding." She elaborated. Sherlock appeared to be thinking it over as he pushed himself up so that he was sat in the centre of the sofa with his feet resting on the floor.

"We can sleep in it." Ethan suggested, trying to persuade Sherlock to go through with it and stuffing his thumb into his mouth.

"All of us?" Sherlock inquired, gesturing vaguely around the room with one hand whilst gently removing said thumb from Ethan's mouth with the other.

"Yes." Ethan nodded, his little head bouncing enthusiastically. "Me, you, mummy and Maddie." He smiled, pointing to each person respectively.

"We can picnic in it?" Maddie offered. "Mummy could make sandwiches for dinner?"

"Little sandwiches and bowls of crisps? We could tell stories." Molly added her own ideas. "What do you think?" She directed the question to her husband.

Sherlock made a show of acting as though he was thinking about it before he nodded, his curls bouncing as he did so. His face broke out into a smile and suddenly the sitting room was filled with screams as he lunged forwards, grabbing both of the children to him with no prior warning and beginning to blow raspberries on the exposed skin of their bodies.

Molly would love for him to claim that he was a sociopath now.

"Daddy!" The kids admonished through their giggles, kicking playfully and trying to wriggle away from him.

Three hours later, Sherlock and Molly had constructed a den in the sitting room of 221B using clothes horses as walls and cushions to hold it steady. Each member of the family had changed into their pyjamas, Sherlock into a fresh pair, and were perched on the cushions underneath the blanket that was acting as the den's roof. On the floor in the centre of them was a plate filled with jam, ham, chicken and meat paste sandwiches cut into triangles, two bowls filled with different flavoured crisps and chocolate and small bottles of dilute pop.

Sherlock was in the process of telling his children the story of the case of _'The Elephant in the Room'_ and the children were giggling away at him, munching on sandwiches and crunching on crisps.

Molly was just happy that her husband was feeling better.

When bedtime rolled around, Sherlock, Molly, Maddie and Ethan could be found curled up under the duvet from Sherlock and Molly's bed and a number of spare blankets. Sherlock was lying on the far side of the den, Molly on the near and the children curled up in between them. All fast asleep.

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 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


	3. Chapter 3

**Here's a little bit of H/C.**

 **Thank you for the reviews, favourites and follows.**

 **Sorry for any mistakes.**

"Daddy?"

Sherlock forced his eyes open at the sound of Ethan's voice as the children appeared next to the sofa, standing side-by-side. Sherlock was unwell. In a sense, at least. The detective had been injured on a case and both Molly and John had confined him to either the bed or the couch. He had chosen the couch for the time being.

He looked over at the children, smiling tiredly at them, the painkillers he had consumed were certainly taking their toll on him. Ethan was clad in his pyjamas, having only been awake for a little over 20 minutes and Maddie was wearing a little yellow sundress that matched the one Molly had worn to John and Mary's wedding.

Molly tore her gaze away from the book she was reading and looked over from her place in Sherlock's chair, preparing to tell the children not to bother daddy because he needed to rest when Ethan held out the stuffed toy he had been cuddling under his arm and Maddie presented a piece of paper to him.

"Teddy." Ethan mumbled around the thumb that was stuffed in his mouth. "For you."

"Ethan," Sherlock sighed softly, "I can't take your teddy."

"He'll make you feel better, daddy." Ethan promised, his little arm still extended. "He makes me feel better." Ethan took that moment to put on his best puppy dog eyes, an expression that he had inherited from Sherlock. "Please?"

"Just for a little while." Sherlock relented, blinking slowly as he allowed his son to tuck the teddy under the blanket that was covering his body.

"I did a drawing, daddy." Maddie held out her paper once Ethan stepped back. Sherlock took it from her so that he could get a closer look. Unlike he had expected, Maddie hadn't drawn one of her typical pictures of the family. Instead, she'd chosen to draw the outcome of his most recent experiment so that Sherlock could monitor it without having to get up.

"Oh Maddie," Sherlock breathed, reading the basic notes from his little girl which, whilst simple, told him all he needed to know about the current state of his experiment. Sherlock was touched that his little girl had done so much for him. "Thank you." He extended an arm, beckoning the children closer. "Come here, give daddy a kiss."

Both children pressed a kiss against his cheek before sitting down on the floor beside the sofa, Maddie reading the new book Molly had got her and Ethan playing with his trains. They wanted to 'keep watch' and make sure that their daddy didn't do anything that would impede his recovery.

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 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


	4. Chapter 4

**A little more hurt/comfort. Poor Ethan.**

 **Sorry for any mistakes.**

Sherlock could see it coming. Maddie and Ethan were a little ahead of their parents, choosing to run from lamppost to lamppost to keep themselves amused on the way home, waiting patiently for their parents to catch up to them before setting off to the next lamppost. Sherlock had noticed the upended flagstone directly in front of his little boy, but didn't have time to shout out and warn the children about it before little Ethan tripped.

His left foot became entangled with his right as he fought to regain his equilibrium, but his momentum sent him falling to the concrete and skidding along the floor. Molly and Sherlock shouted his name and Maddie stopped, running back to him.

Ethan remained lying on his stomach on the floor and was scarily still and quiet for a moment, clearly dazed, before the pain set in and the shock of falling registered. Ethan began to cry, an elongated wail mixed in with a sob that had Maddie in tears of fear and empathy.

"Daddy!" Ethan yelled, making no attempt to stand up. The detective had already broke into a run, hurrying towards his children. He dropped to his knees beside the child, carefully touching his shoulder to let him know that he was there. The detective couldn't get the sound of skin slapping against concrete to stop reverberating around inside his head, bouncing off of the walls of his mind palace.

"Ethan," Sherlock spoke as Molly reached Maddie, pulling her into a hug. Neither his voice, nor his outward appearance betrayed any sign of the panic he was feeling, "what have you hurt? Can daddy see?"

Sherlock, very carefully, shifted him off of his stomach and lifted him so that he was standing in front of him. He'd skinned both hands, the heel of his left and the base of his thumb on his right. Both injuries were red-raw and bleeding, he was holding his hands limply. He had gravel rash on his right elbow, his left hand seemingly having taken the brunt of his fall and both of his knees were skinned and bleeding down his legs. Sherlock was both thankful and frustrated that he was wearing shorts and a t-shirt.

They allowed him access to the wounds but had failed to provide the padding that could have prevented his injuries.

Sherlock also found a graze on his little boy's chin and gently pried open his mouth to make certain that he hadn't bitten his tongue.

Sherlock rose to his feet after ensuring that his son didn't require a hospital and mentally admonished himself for internally panicking so much. He plucked him from the floor and settled him onto his hip. In a look, he wordlessly agreed with Molly to just take the children home and tend to his injuries there.

The small family made their way home, Sherlock cradling the sniffling little boy on his hip.

"Daddy?" Sherlock looked down, seeing Maddie staring up at him with red, watery eyes.

"Sweetheart?" He inquired.

"Is he okay?"

A single tear fell down her cheek.

"Oh Maddie," Sherlock cooed, "don't cry. He'll be just fine." He ran a hand through Maddie's hair before re-placing it to support his son's weight.

 **Thank you for the follows and favourites and thank you for reading.**

 **Please review, I'd love to know if you're enjoying this so far.**

 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


	5. Chapter 5

**Just another short chapter.**

 **Sorry for any mistakes.**

Molly hovered in the doorway of little Ethan's bedroom, leaning against the doorframe with her arms folded across her chest as she smiled at the sight before her. Sherlock was lying beneath the duvet with his son, his arm wrapped around both the boy and his teddy bear, a book held between both hands as he read softly to the child.

Contrary to popular belief, Sherlock was absolutely wonderful with the children. Right now he was reading _The Very Hungry Caterpillar_ to his son to get him to settle down to sleep.

In the room next door Maddie was lying in bed, waiting patiently for daddy to read to her.

Ethan was cuddled up against Sherlock, his head resting against his chest and his little hand resting on his stomach as he slowly dozed off. Sherlock came to the last page, quietly closed the book and placed it on the bedside table. He looked down at his son, placing a kiss to his forehead and giving him a soft squeeze before he slipped out of the bed.

After tucking his son in and flicking off the light, he left the room, leaving the door slightly ajar and pressed his lips against Molly's.

"One down," he whispered, sliding past his wife and disappearing into Maddie's bedroom to set about reading to her, "one more to go."

 **Thank you for reading. I'd love to know what you think.**

 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


	6. Chapter 6

**Bath time :)**

 **Sorry for any mistakes.**

Sherlock was hot on the little boy's tail, his shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows, as he ran, naked, around the sitting room. He had decided that he was going to play catch-me with daddy whilst the detective was trying to get him in the bathtub and was giving his father a run for his money. But the detective had plenty of experience chasing and catching fully grown criminals and murderers; a four year old boy was no match for him.

Sherlock caught the little boy in the sitting room, scooping him up and tipping him upside down in his arms. There was a bright smile on Sherlock's face as the child giggled. It was certainly one of his favourite sounds. Tickling his stomach, he carried the laughing and wriggling child into the bathroom, depositing him into the warm water beside his sister.

"Daddy!" Ethan whined as he felt the water around his waist, but it was a light-hearted whine which was mixed with a giggle and Sherlock simply stuck his tongue out at him and reached for his wind up diver. He grabbed the watermelon scented shampoo after wetting his hair with a beaker and began to massage it in as Molly lathered her daughter's hair in a strawberry scented froth, the little girl singing happily under her breath and playing with a rubber duck.

"Just think," Sherlock spoke, tickling his little boy with his bubble coated hands, "once the bath is over you can put your jammies on and we can all cuddle on the couch in front of a movie." Maddie's singing came to an abrupt stop and she looked up at Sherlock with big eyes.

"Movie?" She repeated.

"Yes." Molly smiled softly at the children. "Stand up, sweetie, let me rinse the bubbles out of your hair." Maddie did so and Sherlock had Ethan do the same.

"You smell like a fruit bowl." Sherlock laughed softly, sniffing dramatically at the scent that filled the room when the different shampoos mixed in the water.

"Will you put your jammies on, too, daddy?" Maddie inquired and Molly lifted her out of the water, wrapping her in a towel and sitting on the edge of the bath with her on her lap. After ensuring that all the bubbles were no longer trapped in Ethan's thick hair, he lifted him out of the tub and followed Molly's lead, sitting on the closed toilet seat.

"Mummy and I will be changing into our jammies." Sherlock nodded.

"We really don't have much choice." Molly laughed, gesturing to their clothing. Both she and her husband were somehow soaked from bathing their children.

"And hot chocolate?" Ethan questioned as Sherlock rubbed his hair with the towel.

"Hot chocolate, hmm?" Sherlock asked, pretending to be thinking about it. "I don't see why not. What do you think, mummy?"

"Hot chocolate sounds wonderful." Molly admitted.

"Hot chocolate, a movie, cuddles on the couch and dinosaur jammies." Sherlock informed, his eyes widening a fraction, a playful look on his features. Ethan held onto his shoulders as he stepped into his underwear and Sherlock found himself blowing raspberries on his stomach.

"Butterfly jammies, mummy?" Maddie asked, giggling as she looked over her shoulder to watch her daddy and brother.

"Of course."

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 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


	7. Chapter 7

**A little more H/C. Sorry Maddie.**

 **Sorry for any mistakes.**

Sherlock dropped the bag of evidence that he had been holding onto the desk in front of the detective inspector, his phone pressed to his ear and his eyes telling Lestrade all that he needed to know. There was something amiss with one of his children. DI Lestrade didn't even both to try and stop his leaving, he would have simply been ignored or insulted anyway.

Sherlock had been summoned to his children's school because, apparently, his daughter had been in an altercation with another student.

Maddie was a shy child, she got that from Molly. She was slightly insecure and a little nervous in certain situations; school was one of them. She was academically able but struggled in certain areas and disliked any form of criticism. It made her extremely disappointed in herself.

So to be in a situation where she was in the head teacher's office and knowing that her father had been contacted must be killing the poor girl.

Sherlock knew that Maddie was very tolerant. She had a little brother, Lord knew she had to be. So, for her to have acted out in what could be described as an 'altercation' meant that something bad must have happened to provoke her.

Sherlock barged through the gate to the school, making a mental note of the lack of safety as he did so. He would complain about that later, however. His coat billowed behind him as he walked through the school grounds and to the office, coming to a stop in front of the reception desk, his Belstaff falling around the back of his legs just below his knees. He was immediately shown back to the head teacher's office and figured that either his daughter was in a lot of trouble, or the receptionist was intimidated by him.

Mrs. Monroe, the head of his children's school, welcomed him in, nodding to where his little girl was. Maddie had shifted the chair that she was sitting in so that she had her back to the head mistress' desk and anyone who entered through the door had a side view of her. She was curled up in a tiny ball, her knees pulled to her chest and her head buried between them. Sherlock could tell from her laboured breathing that she was crying and was definitely in a state.

"Maddie," Sherlock spoke in a soft voice and his daughter's head swivelled in his direction before she turned back again. Sherlock felt his heart twinge. He had received a brief glimpse of his baby's ruddy, tear stained face. Focusing his attention solely on his child, the detective crossed to the corner of the room, crouching down beside the chair she was on so that his back was to anyone who entered the room, "sweetheart, what's happened?"

Maddie forced herself to look at him and Sherlock just wanted to hold her to his chest and squeeze all the sadness out of her. But he knew that he had to hear the story and he wanted her side of it before the head mistress had a chance to butt in. Little Maddie's eyes were red and saw from where she had rubbed the tears away, there was a trail of snot running from her nose to her top lip, her face was red-raw and there were tears still streaming down her cheeks.

Sherlock made note of the graze on her forehead, the bruise surrounding it, and wanted to ascertain that there were no other injuries on his little girl.

"Can you talk to me, princess?" Sherlock spoke softly, reaching over the chair arm to place his hand on his daughter's shoulder, wanting to reassure her that he was there to listen and he would always hear her side of the story before making a decision. "Tell daddy's what's happened."

The head teacher seemed to have taken the hint and remained silent as Sherlock tried to coax his little girl into speaking. And when she did speak, it was in broken, unstructured sentences. Her words were cut in half, interrupted by sobs and hurried intakes of breath or elongated by her pain and her tears as she stammered her way through an explanation.

Sherlock pulled a packet of tissues from his pocket, drying her face and carefully wiping her nose. He spoke softly, trying to get her to calm down as she gasped for breath through her tears, her little chest shuddering.

Maddie had retold that she had found herself in a fight with a little boy in her class after he pulled her hair and then moved her chair out from under her when she went to sit down, causing her to land on her elbow, which Sherlock checked out found a rather large bruise. Maddie had retaliated when the little boy had torn up her work by pushing him and had been shoved into the wall as a result where she had banged her head, the cause of the wound on her forehead.

After the head teacher had vouched that Maddie's teacher had recalled the same event, Sherlock nodded. He didn't believe for a second that his little girl had been lying, but he didn't want to seem like one of those parents that hung on their child's every word.

"And the child that was bullying her?" Sherlock inquired. He and Molly had chosen this school because it had a very high success level when it came to anti-bullying.

"Has been suspended for a week." Mrs. Monroe informed him.

"What do you intend to do in regards to Madison?" Sherlock demanded.

"I believe that it would be in Madison's best interest to be taken home today." Mrs. Monroe explained. "Since she _was_ acting out of self-defence and has no previous records of violence or misbehaviour, I'll willing to allow Madison's part in the incident to pass with no severe repercussions. It will, however, be noted in her file."

Sherlock nodded, content with that. He scrawled his signature on the necessary documents to take his little girl home and collected her book bag and packed lunch box. Sherlock lifted his little girl up onto his hip and she began to play with his collar as they left the school grounds, waiting on the curb for a cab to take them home.

 **Thank you for reading. And thank you for the reviews, follows and favourites.**

 **Please let me know what you think.**

 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


	8. Chapter 8

**Some more H/C, but in the form of the adults this time.**

 **I've been wanting to write something similar to this for a long time and this chapter seemed to just write itself when I started.**

 **Sorry for any mistakes.**

"Daddy!"

Sherlock winced slightly at the yell, the sound bouncing around inside his pounding head. He was holding tightly onto the door handle for support and was almost knocked off his feet as two tiny bodies collided roughly with him, enveloping his legs in a hug. And all he could do was will away the sudden dizziness that had taken over him and swallow back the nausea, praying for the spots to leave his vision.

"Daddy!" Maddie jumped up and down in front of her father and Sherlock had to close his eyes to stop himself from vomiting as the action worsened his vertigo. "We missed you, daddy." She stopped her bouncing and gripped his legs tightly, as though frightened that he would leave again if she let go.

Sherlock had been up on the North Yorkshire Moors with John for a case for the past week. The doctor had found them a nice little hotel in Whitby to stay in while they were away so that they weren't travelling from London to Yorkshire and back every day. Sherlock would never had survived the unnecessary time wasting.

The children had been getting antsy at his being away for so long.

"I missed you too." Sherlock mumbled, pressing the middle and forefinger of his left hand between his eyes as if hoping it would will away the dizziness. He forced his eyes open, seeing his children staring up at him with wide, frightened ones. They knew that there was something wrong. He reached out, clumsily patting their heads before slipping off his shoes and wishing that he hadn't.

The action would have only served to prove that something wasn't right. Sherlock always gave his children hugs and kisses when he returned from a long case.

"Alright," Molly said, appearing in the doorway and fixing Sherlock with a glare that made him want to shrink and disappear. She must have seen him get out of John's car; there was no way that she would have missed his uncoordinated, jerky gait or the way he'd had to fumble to get into 221B, "I'd like you two to go on upstairs and play now. We need to leave daddy alone. He needs to have some lunch and go to sleep."

If there was one thing that Molly had prayed would change about Sherlock when he became a father, it was his self-care during cases, particularly lengthy ones like this.

But it appeared that his fatherly responsibilities didn't make a difference to Sherlock's mindset when he was working. The detective still refused to eat or sleep significantly whilst working on a case, especially a challenging one and Molly was terrified that one day it would get the better of him. If he was in such a state now, Molly didn't want to imagine what an even longer case would do to him.

"I'm fine." Sherlock raised his left hand again, his eyes sliding closed once more. Once he forced them open again, he found himself repeating it having seen the fear and worry in his children's eyes. "Just a little sleepy."

Molly found that she had to hold her husband's bodyweight against her and guide him to the kitchen table, tapping his arm and calling his name repeatedly to keep him awake long enough to eat the macaroni and cheese she had made for his lunch. Even when he'd eaten, he was in no state to make it their bedroom, so she led him to the sofa and helped him lay down so that he could go to sleep. Covering him with a blanket, she felt her frustration with him rise.

When Sherlock eventually awoke, it was way past his children's bedtime and very close to midnight. He was surprised enough to wake up on the sofa, but when he rolled over and found himself being glared at by a very disgruntled Molly Hooper, he felt his heart leap into his throat. She looked about ready to murder him. He allowed himself to fully awaken and then rose slowly from the sofa, testing his equilibrium.

Finding himself steady enough to walk unaided, he left the room. Whatever Molly wanted to say could wait until he'd used the toilet.

His wife was still sitting in exactly the same position when he returned from the bathroom and Sherlock sighed, sitting himself back down on the sofa. He studied Molly for a moment, the poor woman looked absolutely spent - no doubt she'd had to comfort the children before bed. She likely hadn't had much chance to rest since she awoke early that morning to prepare for him coming home.

But it was the look in her eyes that made Sherlock's chest ache. He'd never seen her looking at him with eyes that were so _disappointed_.

"You're upset with me." Sherlock deduced out loud, running a hand across his face. He hadn't wanted to upset Molly.

"I hate it when the children have to see your like that." Molly began, not beating about the bush. "It scares them, Sherlock. They're frightened that there's something very wrong with their daddy. They're not old enough to understand yet."

The detective let out a sigh. He hadn't wanted to upset his children either.

"Why couldn't you have eaten on the way home? You could have bought some chips or popped into a service station. It wouldn't have taken long." Molly spoke, her expression unchanging. "Why didn't you take a nap in the car? John wouldn't have minded. In fact, I'm sure he would have been relieved to see you sleeping. You could have prevented the children from seeing you in such a state, Sherlock."

Molly felt herself sigh as she saw Sherlock's eyes glaze over. It was the first sign that he was trying to protect himself. She could let him put up that wall. Not now.

"I'm not mad, Sherlock." She promised. "Just worried."

"Worried?" Sherlock echoed, frowning at her in confusion. Why would she be worried?

"I've left our children in your care whilst you've been on a case before. Granted, you've been working from home or they've been at Scotland Yard with you. But the point stands, they've been left in your care whilst you've been working and have had the propensity to become unwell like that. Surely you understand my point of view. I don't want anything bad to happen to you _or_ the children."

"Molly," Sherlock whispered, clearly horrified by the idea, "I would _never_ do anything that could impede the safety of our children."

"Not intentionally, perhaps." Molly replied. "But I know that you've collapsed before. You've done it in front of myself _and_ in front of John. Heaven knows how many times it's happened whilst you were living alone." Molly gestured towards the kitchen. "All it takes is for you to collapse with the Bunsen burner on and all manner of things could happen." She folded her arms over her chest.

"You don't trust me." Sherlock concluded after a moment of silence.

"It's not that I don't trust you," Molly promised as Sherlock appeared to hunch up a little, "but the children's safety and happiness are my priorities. I want you to take better care of yourself. I want you to eat and sleep whilst your working, Sherlock."

"Digesting slows me down." Sherlock argued.

"No it doesn't." Molly countered softly. Sherlock had lived by that for quite some time, refuting it could cause trust issues if it wasn't done carefully. "I think that's an excuse."

Just as Molly was trying to prevent, Sherlock's eyes slid closed as though he was in pain. He was silent for a moment or two, thinking, and when he did speak, the words that left his mouth weren't the ones that Molly had been anticipating.

"You think I have an eating disorder."

"No, I don't." Molly was quick to reassure him, shaking her head. "What I think is that somewhere along the way, you've convinced yourself that digesting somehow slows you down. It's not true, Sherlock - I know how bodies work. It only appears to "slow" you down because your brain works so fast. You want everything done like that," she clicked her fingers "so you disregard anything that will take up time and, in doing so, you forfeit your health and it frightens me. And if it scares _me_ , imagine what it must do to the children."

Sherlock shifted uncomfortably. His wriggled in his seat for a moment before leaning forwards, his elbows resting on his knees and burying his face in his open palms.

"A meal or two a day and a 20 minute nap here and there whilst you're working will keep you healthy and allow you the time that you need to work. I don't want anything bad to happen to you _or_ the children, Sherlock." Molly explained, watching him. The only sign that he'd heard what she said came from a twitch in his right foot. It seemed as though he was fighting the urge to leave the conversation. "Ever since you returned after those two years that you were AWOL in foreign countries, I've been terrified that you're going to return to the Sherlock I knew before I saw the true side of you. I don't want that underweight and unhealthy version of you. That Sherlock was unwell and he certainly wasn't very nice. He's not somebody that I want around our children."

"Molly, stop." Sherlock breathed, his voice muffled by his hands. "Please," his voice raise a few octaves as he began to beg, "just stop."

Molly frowned at her husband as he hunched further in on himself momentarily, his shoulders beginning to shake. He took in a deep, shaky breath before dropping his weight backwards against the back of the settee, his hands still covering his face. She hated to see him upset, but it needed to be said and if her words were going to hurt him, then she would deal with the ramifications afterwards.

"Sherlock, I love you." Molly rose from her seat and joined him on the sofa, watching as his uneven breathing caused his chest to quiver. "You _know_ that I love you. That's why it's so important to me that you take care of yourself."

"What if I don't?" Sherlock countered from behind his hands and then seemed to rethink his words. "I-I mean, what if I can't? What if I try and I can't change it?" Molly reached out, placing a hand on her husband's thigh in an attempt to try and soothe him.

"I'll help you." Molly promised, beginning to run her fingers through his raven curls. "I don't expect you to do it on your own, Sherlock. You've lived like this for so long, it's going to take some getting used to. All I ask is that you try." She moved her hands, placing them around Sherlock's wrist and removing his own from his face so that she could see him.

Sherlock's eyes danced towards her, his watery, pink and bloodshot sclerae transforming his expression from sad detective to wounded puppy as tears fell down his cheeks from their ducts. She wondered if her husband had began crying when he first hid his face from her.

"I didn't mean to make you cry, Sherlock, I'm sorry." She promised. "That was never my intention, I just wanted to make a point." She wrapped her arms tightly around his stomach, pulling him close to her and he hid his head in the crook of her neck. "You're a wonderful father, Sherlock. There's no disputing that. And the children adore you." She gently rubbed his back. "But I do think that you owe them an apology."

"Yes." Sherlock agreed, nodding into her neck.

And he did apologise. He made the children chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast the next morning and, once they were done, he sat one of his babies on each of his legs and said;

"Daddy's very sorry about yesterday."

After kissing their foreheads and giving them each a little squeeze, he continued;

"I'm going to try and be better about that, hmm? Because I want to spend time with you when I get home from a case. I don't want to spend all day sleeping on the sofa. So, what do you think; is daddy forgiven?"

The answer to which was a resounding 'yes' and two very sloppy kisses on his cheeks.

"I'm taking you out for ice-cream this afternoon." He promised as they climbed off of his lap. "All of you." He winked at Molly. "My treat."

 **I had to write a happy ending. How 'fairytale' of me.**

 **Thank you for reading. I'd certainly appreciate a review :)**

 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


	9. Chapter 9

**I know it's only short, but I wanted to get one out there and this was the only one ready to be posted.  
Poor little Ethan isn't feeling very well.  
Warning for mentions of vomit.  
Sorry for any mistakes.**

Sherlock knew that it was coming as soon as he became aware of the excessive swallowing coming from his little boy and the sudden colour drainage from his now pale lips. He had figured that he would have a little more time, however. He had just turned around to retrieve the bin from by the doorway when his little boy coughed, vomiting into his hands and over himself and the carpet.

He and Sherlock had been kneeling on the carpet, playing a board game together. The little boy was home sick from school, having been complaining of a tummy ache all night. Sherlock had purposely kept the bin close by, just in case. But apparently, not close enough.

"Oops." Sherlock said, keeping his tone light as he grabbed the bin in time for him to vomit again. His hand danced over the little boy's back, playing with the hair at the nape of his neck. He was trying to prevent what he knew was coming next, but he was fully aware that all he was really doing was prolonging the inevitable.

Within seconds of vomiting for the third time, Sherlock efforts proved futile as the boy's little face crumpled and the tears began to fall.

"Daddy!" Ethan sobbed and Sherlock had to grab his hands by the wrist to prevent him from rubbing his eyes.

"Ethan, I need you to calm down." Sherlock soothed in a soft voice. "I know you're feeling poorly, but crying will make it worse. How does this sound; let daddy give you a bath and scrub the carpet and then you can pop on your jammies. I'll get a blanket and we can lay on the couch and watch cartoons." Sherlock thrust the bin at the little boy as he gagged again, another round having the poor child over the bucket once more. "Oh dear. All done?"

Ethan nodded slowly, straightening himself up a little. Sherlock rose from his spot, getting a glass of water so that his son could rinse out his mouth and get rid of the taste. Sherlock held the glass to his lips and carefully ran his hand through his son's hair.

"Are you sure that you've finished?" Sherlock questioned softly, ignoring the sour smell coming from his little boy and placing a kiss against his forehead.

"Yes daddy." Ethan whispered, clearly tired.

With it ascertained that Ethan was definitely finished for the time being, Sherlock carefully stripped him of his clothing, sprayed some carpet cleaner on the floor and led him into the bathroom to get cleaned up.

 **Thank you for reading.**

 **Please review, I love hearing what you think.**

 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


	10. Chapter 10

**Sorry it's short. I haven't really had much time to write due to college and assignments.  
Sorry for any mistakes.**

Molly groaned heavily, rolling over and attaching herself to the consulting detective beside her. Sherlock snuffled in his sleep but moved closer, burying his head into her shoulder. Molly's stomach was agony, the intermittent cramping and the aching around her upper thighs made her want to do nothing more than curl up to her husband and cry.

Molly was lucky in having a genius as a husband. Socially stunted he may be, but he had a logical mind and he readily accepted that what Molly's body was currently doing would cause her a great deal of pain. He was also well attuned to gruesome experiments and found no sense of disgust at the goings on with his wife's body.

She felt the arms around her tighten and raised her head to see her husband blinking himself into wakefulness. He smiled softly at her, seeing the bags under her eyes and the way she was worrying her bottom lip. He raised a hand, brushing her hair from her eyes and pressed a kiss just above her left eyebrow.

"Morning." He rumbled, his voice laden with sleep. Molly hummed softly in a reciprocated greeting and tightened her arms around his waist, her forehead leaning against his chest. She let out a deep sigh as she heard shouting emitting from up the stairs in the children's bedroom and made to sit up. But Sherlock pushed her back down again, already disentangling himself from her octopus-like embrace. "I'll see to it. Rest."

Before Molly could get a word in, he slipped from the bedroom and could be heard heading up the stairs to the children's bedroom. She was surprised to see him return with a tray laden with cereal, toast and a cup of tea. Sherlock ordered that she rest after taking her pain relief and eating with the promise that he would bring her a hot water bottle and would see to the kids.

Molly couldn't be more thankful that she had Sherlock.

 **Thank you for reading. Please, let me know what you think.**

 **Apologies for the lack of updates, I'll try and find more time to write.**

 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


	11. Chapter 11

**So, due to being unwell, I've had some time these past two days to do some writing.**

 **Sorry for any mistakes.**

"Maddie, may I see you homework?" Sherlock inquired as his baby girl began to lurk around the table where he and Ethan were sitting working on the little boy's letters. Ethan was perched on a booster seat on the chair beside the detective and Maddie had been working in the sitting room on her own homework booklet. Or she should have been, at least. She was supposed to be filling on a workbook about herself.

"I did it, daddy." Maddie answered, placing her hands on the wood under the table and beginning to swing.

"Good." Sherlock nodded. "Now, go and get your homework booklet so that I can check it, please." He ordered softly, readjusting Ethan's grip on the pencil so that he didn't drop it as he traced the dotted letters of his name.

"But I did it. Why do you need to see it?" Maddie responded, folding her arms across her chest as the swinging stopped abruptly. Sherlock didn't answer his daughter's question, instead he simply fixed her with a gaze that sent her back into the sitting room to retrieve the workbook that, as Sherlock had anticipated, was empty.

Sherlock turned to speak to his little girl, to berate her for lying, but stalled as he noticed the tears in his baby girl's eyes. Her face had reddened slightly and her bottom lip was protruding in an adorable little pout. He frowned slightly at the sight.

"Maddie?" Sherlock questioned, concern filling his kaleidoscope eyes. "Sweetheart, what on earth is the matter?" He inquired, putting the booklet on the table in front of him so that he could focus on his baby.

"I can't do it, daddy." Maddie whispered, reaching up with hands balled into fists to rub at her eyes as the tears began to fall.

"Hey princess," Sherlock soothed, pushing his chair backwards and lifting his baby girl onto his lap, settling her so that she was leaning against him, "none of that." He dried the tears with his finger and cradled her to him, purposely ignoring the fact that Ethan was staring at them both. "What do we do if we can't do something?" Maddie shrugged, playing with the bracelet around Sherlock's left wrist; it was a metal bracelet that Molly had purchased for him following their first date, she had a matching necklace.

"I don't know, daddy." She avoided his eyes.

"Yes, you do." Sherlock countered softly. "What do we do if we can't do something?" He repeated softly, listening to his little girl's sniffles.

"Ask." Maddie said in a small voice.

"That's right. We ask for help." He nodded, brushing her fringe from her eyes. "Now, sweetheart, do you need help with your homework?" Maddie nodded tentatively. "Then ask me, princess."

"Daddy, can you help me with my homework?" Maddie whispered and Sherlock pressed a gentle kiss to her cheek.

"Of course I can." He smiled. "But first, dry your eyes."

Once he was certain that the tears had stopped, he turned around, holding her against his chest and produced another pencil, balancing helping both of the children with their work. Ethan managed to learn how to write his name and Maddie filled out the necessary pages in her work book with no more tears.

 **Thank you for reading, please let me know what you think.**

 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


	12. Chapter 12

**This began as a filler chapter, but there's a possibility now that it's going to have an aftermath so keep an eye out, it might not be posted immediately after this one as these stories aren't posted in any kind of chronological order.**

 **Thank you for reading.**

 **Sorry for any mistakes.**

Sherlock could feel the anger rising within his chest as his children clung tightly to his legs, trembling from head-to-toe as the detective inspector, detective sergeant and forensic investigator chose to upend their flat and rummage through their stuff.

Even Sherlock didn't know what had caused this impromptu drugs bust.

But he did know that he was absolutely furious that New Scotland Yard thought it okay to break into his house under the warrant of a drugs bust _whilst_ his children were there and go through their things.

He shared a look with Molly beside him and was thankful to find that she seemed to share his anger.

"Daddy?" Maddie whispered, her fingers hooked in his belt loop as she looked up at the detective with tears in her eyes. "Daddy, what's happening? What are they doing?"

"Your daddy has been very naughty." Anderson spoke up from where he was rummaging through their washing machine searching for who-knows-what. "We're looking for evidence to prove it."

"No." Ethan shook his little head wildly before resting his cheek against the material of Sherlock's trousers. "No, daddy's not naughty."

"It's alright, Ethan." Sherlock promised, combing his fingers through his baby boy's hair, his gaze trained on Anderson.

"Do you have a warrant?" Molly demanded, folding her arms under her bust and turning to face the detective inspector who she had _assumed_ was her husband's friend.

"It's fine." Sherlock spoke through gritted teeth, clearly directing the words to Molly. "They're not going to find anything."

"Daddy," Maddie whimpered, removing her hand from his belt loop and wrapping it tightly around his upper leg.

"It's alright, Maddie." Sherlock soothed, his left hand playing with her hair as his right was with Ethan's. "It won't be long now until they've gone, princess. They're not going to find anything."

Sherlock's relatively calm exterior began to collapse as he felt his anger rising and his breathing became elevated. His eyes widened dramatically. He could feel Maddie's tears beginning to soak through his trousers and little Ethan's nails were digging into the skin of his thigh as he tried to step even closer to his daddy despite already being as close as he could get.

His babies were _terrified_ and he was not going to allow that.

"Leave." Sherlock spoke in a voice that he usually only used to discipline the children. It was a tone he'd picked up from the years he'd lived with John Watson. "You're making my children cry. Leave. There's nothing here for you to find. Do you _really_ think I'd have harmful substances like that around my children? Now, leave."

"Alright." Lestrade relented. "Sherlock's right. We're not finding anything here and there's no sense in distressing the children more. I'm sorry, Sherlock." He led Anderson and Donovan out, apologising once more.

Sherlock carefully prised the children from his legs and lowered himself to his knees between them, holding them close to him once he was certain that Lestrade and his Idiots had definitely gone.

"It's okay," Sherlock soothed, "it's all over now." He promised, comforting them as Molly stared angrily at the door they had just left through. "They've gone."

 **So, I introduced the Scotland Yard Clan - in a sense. I know Donovan didn't really have much of a part in this, but that's because I feel that Donovan isn't really as bad as she comes across. I think she's just following in Anderson's shoes because she likes him - Lord knows why.**

 **Thank you for reading and, as always, I'd love it if you could review.**

 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


	13. Chapter 13

**I think this is more of a filler chapter, because I wanted to introduce John and Mary into the story. I certainly intend to bring them in again. But this will do for an little introduction, I suppose.**

 **Sorry for any mistakes.**

"Uncle John!" The children chorused, jumping up from where they were seated on the floor playing with some magnets Sherlock had given them to keep them occupied whilst they were waiting. The door to 221B had been pushed open moments earlier to reveal John, Mary and a carry cot containing their youngest child, little Ellie-Mae. They wrapped their little arms around his waist before he'd even had the time to completely enter the flat.

"Let him get in before you cuddle him to death." Molly joked, running her fingers through Maddie's hair before taking Ellie-Mae's travel cot from Mary. Sherlock, ever the gentleman, was already helping her to remove her coat. "There's tea brewing."

"Is there a case, Uncle John?" Maddie questioned, both children stepping away from the adults so that John could remove his coat and actually come into the flat. She frowned a little because her dad didn't seem to be in his work mode like he usually was when there was a case.

"No, sweetie," Mary smiled softly, following Molly's lead and running her fingers through the children's hair, "there's no case."

"Then why are you here?" Ethan mumbled around the thumb that was in his mouth as he squeezed his teddy bear around the neck with his other hand. Molly winced slightly, shooting John and Mary an apologetic look, but they just shook their heads in understanding. _Children._

"We thought we'd just come here to see your mummy and daddy." John explained to them as he sat down in the chair that he used to own that had, over time, come to belong to Molly. Mary sat on the sofa and Sherlock took a seat in his own chair. Ethan hopped into the middle seat on the sofa and Molly sat herself down on the sofa cushion beside him after bringing in some tea from the kitchen for the adults and the children's juice bottles.

Sherlock gestured to Maddie who was left standing in the centre of the room. He lifted her up onto his lap when she reached him, wrapping his arms around her stomach so that she didn't fall off of his knee as she sipped at the juice in her bottle.

"When will Helen come again, Uncle John?" Maddie inquired, leaning her head against Sherlock's chest. Helen was John and Mary's oldest child; she was the same age as Maddie and the girls loved spending time together. However, Helen was actually the Watson's second born. Due to complications with their first pregnancy, Mary suffered a miscarriage. But, undeterred, when Mary was better, they tried again. And born out of that was Helen.

"Hopefully the next time that we come to visit." John smiled, tracing invisible pictures into the chair arm. "She's playing at her friend's house right now."

"Why didn't Ellie-Mae go with her?" Maddie questioned and Sherlock sighed softly. Here they go again. Maddie, for some reason, had taken a disliking to little Ellie-Mae. But Sherlock couldn't seem to figure out why.

"We can't expect somebody else to look after our baby, Maddie." Mary explained softly.

"What about those people?" Ethan asked, Molly removing his thumb from his mouth so that his speech wasn't distorted. "Baby-sitters?"

They're different." Molly noted, wiping juice away from Ethan's chin. "They're paid to look after other people's babies."

"So then pay Helen's friend's mummy or daddy." Maddie suggested, shrugging nonchalantly, and John found himself stuck on what to say.

"Hmm." Ethan agreed and Sherlock found himself frowning in question as he tried to figure when it was that his son had taken a dislike to Ellie-Mae. Following in his big sister's footsteps, apparently.

"Remember what I said, Maddie," Sherlock spoke softly, but there was an air of authority to his tone, "Ellie-Mae will grow up soon and you can play with her. But now you just have to be patient."

Maddie huffed. She peeled Sherlock's hands away from her stomach where they were holding her up and clambered off his lap, leaving him with her juice bottle. Seemingly disinterested in Uncle John and Aunty Mary now that they refused to give Ellie-Mae away for a few hours, she made her way up the stairs and into her bedroom to do some colouring. And her pictures _weren't_ going to include Ellie-Mae.

With no idea how much time had passed, Maddie managed to complete three new pictures all hand drawn and coloured. One for Uncle John. One for Aunty Mary. And one for her own mummy and daddy. And it was a good thing that she finished when she did, because just as she put down her coloured pencil, her father called up the stairs for her.

Uncle John and Aunty Mary were leaving.

Maddie hurriedly gathered up her pictures, leaving her pencils strewn all over her bedroom carpet, and ran down the stairs so fast that she almost collided with her daddy at the bottom. He caught her, swinging her up onto his hip and entering the sitting room where John and Mary were putting on their coats. They were almost ready to leave except -

"There she is." John smiled, reaching out his arms for Sherlock to pass the little girl over to him. "We couldn't leave without saying bye-bye to our little princess, could we?"

"I did a picture." She pushed a piece of paper against his chest. And then did the same to Mary. And then to Sherlock.

"Oh wow." John smiled softly. She had decided, out of the goodness of her heart, that she _would_ include little Ellie-Mae in her pictures. And there, in John's hand, was a drawing of herself, John, Mary, Sherlock, Molly, Helen, Ellie-Mae and Ethan. And the one in Mary's hand was very similar.

In Sherlock's hand was one of their little family. Mummy, Daddy, Maddie and Ethan.

"Do you know where these are going?" John asked the little girl who shook her head. "On our fridge freezer. Where all of our guests can see them." John passed the picture to Mary and held the little girl tightly.

She might not want Ellie-Mae now. But something told them that she'd love her when she grew up.

 **Sorry for reading – please let me know what you think.**

 **Ibelieveinguardianangels**


	14. Chapter 14

**Sorry for any mistakes.**

"It's big in here, daddy." Maddie breathed, taking a step backwards and closer to her parents, thankful that her small hand was clutched in her father's much larger one as they entered the multi-room building that was to be their new home. Both of the children were staring around in awe as their little eyes attempted to take in everything at once. "Very big."

The little Holmes family was moving into a large country house away from the hustle and bustle of London. They needed a larger house now. 221B wasn't big enough for them and Sherlock had seen this beautiful building on the internet; he'd shown it to Molly and there was no going back.

Mrs. Hudson had been sad to see them leave but Molly and Sherlock had placated the kind old lady with the promise that they would visit. Sherlock had no question that, should Mrs. Hudson ever need it, there would be room for her. Especially after everything she had done for the detective.

"Very, very big." Ethan repeated as he unconsciously cuddled up to his daddy's leg, his arm wrapped tightly around the neck of his teddy bear. His right arm wrapped around Sherlock's upper leg and his ear rested against his father's thigh. It had become a habit that, when the little boy was anxious or scared, he would play with his daddy's pockets making him the cause of Sherlock requiring numerous new pairs of trousers.

"But it's nice." Maddie promised, as though trying to reassure their father that they _didn't_ hate it as Molly entered the house with her own suitcase. "And we still have our own rooms, don't we, daddy? Can we go and have a look around?"

"We can," Molly agreed as she put the suitcase with the rest of them in the entrance to the home, "but daddy and I don't want any fighting over the bedrooms, okay?"

"And afterwards, there's something that we'd like to show you." Sherlock smiled down at the kids, knowing that his words would spark their children's interest.

"What, daddy?" Ethan inquired, looking up at him.

"Wait and see." Sherlock smiled at the little boy in a way that could only be described as cheekily. "Just leave your bags down here for the moment and we'll deal with them a little later on." Sherlock looked between the children as Molly was stacking up the suitcases behind them to ensure that nobody fell over them. "Mummy and I have been coming here whilst you've been out at school and reception. Each bedroom has a bed, a wardrobe and some drawers and we can add more later on when we've all settled in."

Sherlock released his daughter's hand so that she could go and investigate the new house only to find his little boy still latched onto his side and his daughter standing staring up at him. "Go on! Go and have a look around." He shooed softly.

"Ethan," Molly spoke, "you can go with her. Go on, see which bedroom you'd like. Daddy and I are coming too. We just need to sort these suitcases out."

"It's big." Ethan whimpered, not daring to move from his father's side.

Sherlock sighed softly.

"Arms up." He ordered gently. "I'll carry you." Ethan let go of Sherlock's side to raise his arms so that Sherlock had access to his underarms to lift him. His little jumper rose with them to reveal his belly button. Sherlock settled him onto his hip, supporting his weight with one arm and carefully straightening his jumper with the other. "Your bedroom will be much bigger than at 221B so there's going to be more room to play."

"The room at the end is mine and daddy's." Molly called as the small family made their way up the stairs.

Maddie seemed to take a liking to the room closest to their parent's room, just as Sherlock had expected that she would. After agreeing that Maddie could have the room closest to theirs, they left her to get used to the room and took Ethan to discover which of the final two rooms he would like. When it was decided that Ethan would take the bedroom opposite the bathroom, the adults took their children on a guided door of the house.

"Mummy, is the other bedroom for baby?" Maddie inquired on the way down the stairs and Molly nodded, running her hand over her barely visible bump. Sherlock and Molly hadn't been planning on having another child, it had come as quite a surprise to Molly when Sherlock had decided to tell her that she was pregnant. Very much so, given she hadn't even realised that there was anything amiss.

"Daddy? Show us." Ethan spoke, playing with one of Sherlock's curls. Sherlock didn't speak, instead he responded by simply tapping his forefinger against his nose and sticking his tongue out at the little boy.

"Will we like it?" Maddie inquired as Molly led them through the kitchen and towards the back door.

"We certainly hope so." Molly nodded.

Molly unlocked the back door, allowing Maddie to exit the house first and Sherlock to follow with Ethan before joining them. Little Ethan had begun to wriggle in Sherlock's embrace, a signal that he wanted to be put down, as he stared with wide eyes, his expression the spitting imagine of the one on his sister's face.

"We have our own _playground_?" Maddie's voice was full of disbelief. In front of her was a large, wooden play structure and a little swing set. Sherlock, being the genius he was, had discovered a way to get the family to the house without the children being able to see the climbing frame in the garden.

"Go over there and look in the shed." Sherlock hinted as he set Ethan on the floor.

Maddie and Ethan did so, setting off at a run across the large garden and over to the shed, pulling the door open. The children gasped simultaneously at the sight before them.

"New bikes?" Ethan asked, looking behind him at the adults as they caught up with them.

"And scooters, garden toys and a pool for summer." Sherlock grinned. "There are also toys for winter."

"Can we play, daddy?" Ethan begged, staring up at the detective.

"Just for a little while," Sherlock nodded, "and then we need to go in and unpack."

He assisted Ethan up the steps of the climbing frame and to the top of the slide, keeping a tight hold of him as he slid down whilst Molly pushed Maddie on the swings and the children rotated around the little play area. The fun lasted the entire afternoon and it was just before dinner that Molly and Sherlock chose to bring their children in so that they could unpack.

 **SH-SH-SH-SH**

"What's the matter, Ethan?" Sherlock whispered as his multi-coloured orbs focused on the little boy hovering beside the bed. Ethan was standing with his teddy bear clutched against his chest and his left thumb stuffed in his mouth. Feeling movement behind him, the consulting detective glanced over to find Molly awake, leaning up on her elbow and looking over at the little boy.

It was obvious that the little boy had been unsettled, his hair was mussed and the fluffy, blue pyjamas dotted with race cars that hugged his body were all skewwhiff. The shirt was crooked and partly hooked up at the back and his pants were twisted at the waist.

"I can't sleep, daddy." Whimpered the little boy. He was certainly upset, his voice was horse from crying and his nose was clearly bunged up. He risked a step closer to the bed and the detective reached out a hand, pressing the back of it to his son's forehead, thankful to find that he didn't appear to be feverish. Just emotional.

"Are you scared?" Molly inquired, understanding that he would likely be a little unnerved about being in such a large house after living in 221B for the four years that he had been alive. "Why are you scared?" She inquired as he nodded along with her words.

"It's new." Ethan confirmed both Molly and Sherlock's suspicions.

"It is." Sherlock agreed. "But you'll get used to it. Do you think that you can be a big boy and go back to bed?"

"But daddy," Molly and Sherlock shared a look as Ethan averted his gaze, poking at the carpet with his toe.

"Would you prefer to sleep in here for tonight?" Sherlock offered.

"Yes please, daddy." Ethan nodded his head and Sherlock climbed out of the bed, straightening up Ethan's pyjamas and giving him a cuddle. He hooked his hands under the little boy's arm, just as he had earlier that day, and lifted him up. Ethan bent his legs to make sure he didn't kick anyone as Sherlock settled him in between them both.

"But just for tonight." Sherlock repeated, joining them. But Ethan had already begun to drift off and the two adults shared a knowing look.

 **What do you think about Molly's news? So I've already written baby as having a name. But I was thinking this –**

 **If anybody wants to pick a name for the Holmes new arrival, feel free to leave ideas in a review – perhaps even say why. If I find one that I like better than the one I chose then that will be the name of the baby. To help you chose – baby is a girl. Of course, the reviewer who chooses the name will be mentioned and have the chapter dedicated to them.**

 **It's up to you whether you want to or not.**

 **As always, thank you for reading.**

 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


	15. Chapter 15

**Here's another chapter.**

 **Sorry for any mistakes.**

"Argh!" Sherlock growled, entering the living room. Maddie, Ethan and Molly were used to Sherlock growling, especially if his experiments weren't going right or he couldn't find the connection between murder victims. But this was different. Ethan's eyes widened with delight when he saw his father, Maddie's following suit. Molly smiled brightly at the detective, an amused glint in her brown eyes.

Sherlock had a black eye patch covering his left eye, a fake golden hoop earring clipped to his right ear and a red bandana around his head. In his right hand was a plastic sword and a fake beard was stuck to his chin, a moustache to his upper lip. He was wearing a black 'pirate' outfit, even down to the shoes.

"Who's ready t' help me find me stolen treaaye?" Sherlock's baritone speech had an added growl and a very strong, stereotypically 'pirate' accent. The skin at the bridge of his nose and between his eyes scrunched up and his uncovered eye twitched.

"Me daddy!" The children chorused, jumping up from the sofa where they'd been watching the television from their mummy.

"You don't look much like pirates." Sherlock spoke, acting sceptical as the children approached him. "We'll have t' fix that. Luckily, I have me some spare uniforms that might be small enough t' fit you." Sherlock slid his sword into the scabbard on his side and produced a bag he'd hidden behind the counter in the kitchen.

Opening the bag, he pulled out two small outfits that matched his, one for Maddie and one for Ethan. He helped the children out of their clothing and into the costumes, chuckling as Maddie fought with the bandana she was trying to wrap around her head and currently had over her eyes. He helped Ethan with his eye patch and fastened Maddie's hair at her chin like a beard.

"Now, you look t' part. But can you talk like a true pirate?" He growled, fixing a cuddly parrot to Ethan's shoulder. "Let me hear you say 'argh'!"

"Argh!" The children repeated, looking up at their father with such joy and wonder in their eyes that Sherlock felt his inner pirate blush with pride.

"I'm not convinced. Let me hear it again." He ordered playfully. "Louder this time."

"Argh!" They called, their giggles filling the room. Molly watched in awe from her seat as her husband transformed into Captain 'Lock of the High Seas.

"I have a very important task for you." Sherlock rose from his kneeling position, unsheathing his sword again and pointing it at the children. "Hidden somewhere on this here island," he gestured around him with the sword, "be me treayye. Mean old Dread Pirate Doubloons has pilfered me gold. I require your assistance in findin' it."

The children stared up at him with wide eyes, their mouths hanging open.

"If you do a good job findin' it, I will share it with you." Sherlock tilted his head to the side. "But," he held up a warning finger, "you have t' work together. Doubloons has port clues for you t' find. They're hidden on t' island somewhere and they'll lead you to t' stolen gold. Do you feel up to the challenge?"

"Yes." Ethan nodded, Maddie nodding enthusiastically along with him.

"I have t' first clue here." He handed a piece of tea-darkened paper to the children.

 _Captain 'Lock,_

 _All shinin' and silver with a beautiful face._

 _You'll look into me and find this place._

 _Doubloons._

The children shared a look before turning their attention to the detective-cum-pirate.

"What does it mean, Captain?" Maddie questioned and Sherlock knelt back down again.

"Think about it." Sherlock responded, not once breaking character. "What's in our house be shiny and silver with a face?"

The children seemed to be thinking for a moment before Ethan said;

"Mirror!"

"Very well done, pirate Ethan." Sherlock smiled his crooked grin.

"But which one?" Maddie inquired. There were six mirrors in total in the Holmes' new household. One in the living room, one in the hallway, one in the bathroom, one on Maddie's dressing table and one in Molly and Sherlock's bedroom.

"Well, we'll have t' check them all." Sherlock decided. "But first, I think we require another pirate. An even number for luck. And who could be a pirate?" He pretended to look around him, his eyes falling on Molly.

"Mummy!" Maddie called, following Sherlock's gaze. And the detective-turn-pirate presented a pirate costume in Molly's size. The pathologist slipped it on over her clothing and joined the group on their trail.

"Pirate Madison," Sherlock commanded, "how would you like t' check t' mirror in here?"

"Yes Captain." Madison agreed and the little Pirate crew made her way over to the sitting room.

"Give it a thorough check. Make aye you don't miss anywhere." Sherlock ordered. Lifting her up by the waist so she could check. Nothing.

"Not here, Captain."

"A pity." Sherlock mock-sighed. "Where now?"

"The hallway." Ethan pointed and the little family shifted along to the hallway where there was still no sign of the clue. Maddie eventually found it in the bathroom cabinet behind the mirrored doors.

"Maddie, speak forth t' clue." Sherlock ordered with a wave of his sword.

 _Captain 'Lock_

 _I try t' send a letter, but all I do be receive_

 _T' port t' all thin's outside, I be wooden, I believe._

 _Doubloons_

"The letter box." Maddie looked up at Sherlock. "Right?"

At Sherlock's nod, the family set back towards the door with Sherlock and Molly's warning to be careful on the stairs. There, hanging in the letter box was another clue. Molly pulled it out.

"And t' clue is?" Sherlock inquired.

"It's all backwards," Ethan whispered, clearly in awe, "how can we read it?"

"Hold it up t' the mirror." Sherlock spoke and Molly lifted him up.

"What does it say?" Molly asked. "Can you read it?"

"No mummy." Ethan shook his head and Molly smiled.

"It says;"

 _Captain 'Lock_

 _You need t' stop and take a look at t' contents o' any book,_

 _This be t' place for you t' read, it isn't a library that you need._

 _Doubloons_

"The book room?" Ethan asked. "That's where we read."

The book room was essentially a tiny library. It was originally Sherlock's office, but he decided that he didn't need it and so they turned it into a quiet area affectionately dubbed the 'book room'.

"Quite right, Pirate Ethan." Sherlock nodded as Molly lowered him to the ground. Sherlock led the family through to the book room, lifting Maddie up so that she could reach the clue pinned to a shelf above his head.

"You read it, Captain," Maddie said as she was placed to the floor.

 _Captain 'Lock,_

 _Skip t' the place of work, touch nothing but look near_

 _On t' surface I do lurk, find me right here_

 _Doubloons_

"What?" Ethan spoke, frowning at his dad, his expression matching that of Molly's and Maddie's. Realising that his clue was a little too hard for his children, and wife apparently, Sherlock said;

"Ah! I see! T' next clue be on t' desk. There's where Pirate Molls and I work." And the children accepted that he had solved the clue.

"Your bedroom?" Maddie asked and Sherlock nodded, standing up and taking Maddie's hand and guiding his children back up the stairs and into the bedroom.

"Go and retrieve t' clue, Pirate Maddie." Sherlock smiled, letting go of her hand and watching her cross to it.

 _Captain' Lock,_

 _With clothes o' green and bark o' a dog_

 _Search me for t' booty, I sleep like a log._

 _Doubloons._

"Tree?" Ethan asked, pointing out of the window.

"Yes, tree." Sherlock smiled, picking up his tiring little pirate and settling him on his hip. The little family found their shoes, exiting the house and going out to the garden and to the apple tree at the bottom. Beneath the tree was a treasure chest overflowing with fake gold coins. They reached the chest together, Sherlock placing his son on the floor.

"Who should open t' treaaye chest?" Sherlock demanded and had two little fingers pointed in his direction. "Me?"

"Yes Captain," They nodded and Sherlock knelt down on the floor, lifting the lid of the box with a grunt of mock-effort.

Sherlock gestured for the children and his wife to join him and they looked in the box. Inside was a bunch of chocolate coins in both silver and gold tin foil wrapping, a few toys and some more packets of sweets beneath.

"Now," Sherlock spoke, no longer sounding like the pirate he had been, "because we _all_ worked as a team, the treasure will be shared _equally_ between the four of us. Mummy and daddy will make sure that is done. Now, come here, give daddy a hug." The children did so, wrapping their little arms tightly around him. Once the hug was over, he picked up the treasure chest under one arm and Ethan up with the other, the family heading back in. Molly took the box from Sherlock and began to separate the sweets and toys into bags as Sherlock took his children to get changed back into their regular clothing.

After settling the children on the sofa with a film, he joined Molly as she placed the little toys in the children's bags.

"When did you have the time to set that up?" She asked her pirate, looking up and pressing a kiss to his lips.

"The idea came to me last night. I acted on it this morning. With the help of John and Mary." He smiled. "They've decided to do something similar for Helen a little later in the week, but instead of pirates, they're going to be Disney princesses and a prince. Apparently."

"You make a wonderful pirate," Molly smiled, "Captain 'Lock."

 **Thank you for reading.**

 **I got the rhymes off a 'riddle' website that I currently can't remember the name of. I can't come up with rhymes like that…**

 **Also, thank you for the suggestions. I now have a choice I'd like you to help me make. I have the following three names as options;**

 _ **Ruthie**_ **(submitted by a guest)**

 _ **Christabel**_ **(submitted by** Jesse Holmes **)**

 _ **Charlotte**_ **(my original name for Baby Holmes)**

 **Which would you like to see as the baby name?**

 **Please let me know what you think.**


	16. Chapter 16

**Thanks for reading.  
Sorry for any mistakes.**

"Molly!" The poor pathologist almost leapt out of her skin at her husband's outraged yell. She dropped the knife she was using to prepare some chicken for tea on the work surface and within moments the detective's footsteps could be heard on the stairs descending from the bedrooms. Molly turned when she heard him enter the kitchen and came face-to-face with a furious detective. "Look at this!"

In the palm of his outstretched hand sat two small cameras. Molly's heart dropped into her stomach.

"Tell me that you didn't get them out of the children's bedrooms." Molly pleaded, although she knew exactly where they had come from and also knew that if Sherlock had been in a better frame of mind, he would have reprimanded her for such a stupid comment.

"I'm going to murder him." Sherlock hissed, slamming the cameras on the countertop and Molly knew that he had enough murder techniques hidden away in that head of his that he could murder his meddling brother and have him disposed of before anyone noticed that he was missing. He could feel the nausea rising in his stomach as he met Molly's gaze. "Who the _hell_ has he had watching out children?"

Sherlock clearly wasn't expected an answer from Molly as before he had even spat the words out, he was fumbling in his pocket for his mobile phone.

"I only found those two in Maddie's bedroom because I was looking through her bookshelf for something to read to her tonight."

Sherlock was tapping furiously on the screen of his phone and Molly was thankful that she had talked him into investing in a glass screen protector. Molly fell silent when the tell-tale ringing sound filled the room. Sherlock put the phone call on loud speaker so that Molly could listen in on the conversation.

She gripped the detective's free hand tightly as Mycroft's voice rang through the little speaker and into the otherwise silent room.

"Brother mine;" Mycroft began and Sherlock angrily cut him off before he had the chance to say anything else. He was _not_ in the mood for pleasantries.

"What the hell do you think you are playing at?" Sherlock growled in a tone so angry and so low that Molly almost backed away from him. "Putting cameras in my children's bedrooms?!"

"Sherlock, I can assure you," Mycroft began and Sherlock could sense that he had almost backed away from his phone at the anger that the youngest Holmes brother was presenting. Good! "The instalment of the cameras in the bedrooms of your children was only precautionary. You are more than aware that your line of work can cause danger for your offspring." Mycroft promised. "They're monitored only by the people that I trust."

"How dare you think that this is okay?" Sherlock hissed, his voice dangerously quiet now. "I don't care how much you trust your workers. You _do not_ put cameras in the bedrooms of my children. In fact, all of your cameras will be removed from this household and if I happen across any more I will take this further. It will do you well to remember that I am in regular, close contact with New Scotland Yard."

"Yes, Sherlock," Mycroft's speech had adopted a condescending tone now and Sherlock was already prepared for what was coming next, "because Mummy will be so _proud_ of you for discarding the safety of your children-,"

"Do you honestly believe that mother will be _proud_ of you for having strangers watch my children whilst they are in their bedroom?" Sherlock growled. "Should Molly and I choose to install security cameras for the safety of our children, we will do so ourselves and the children will be informed about it."

Sherlock didn't even allow Mycroft a chance to speak again. He hung up the phone, slamming that down on the countertop also.

"Sherlock," Molly spoke softly, entwining her arms around his middle in an attempt to calm him down, "all we can do now is remove the cameras from the house."

"Filming me is one thing, Molly," Sherlock whispered, his anger giving in to sadness, "but I will not allow him to do such a thing to my babies."

"I know." Molly promised, squeezing him tightly. His arms wrapped around her, squeezing back in response. "But we happen to be very close to a certain Detective Inspector and I refuse to believe that he will allow this to happen. Family or not, it's illegal to film anyone under the age of 18 without explicit permission from their parent's first. I doesn't matter that he is the British Government."

 **Let's welcome Mycroft into the story. I'm not sure how often he's going to appear though.**

 **Thank you for reading. Please let me know what you think.  
ibelieveinguardianangels **


	17. Chapter 17

**Before you all murder me, I can only apologise about my lack of updating. I've not exactly been in the best frame of mind for writing up until recently and any spare time I've had has been taken up by coursework and assignments.**

 **Thank you for reading.**

 **Sorry for any mistakes and sorry it's so, so short, it ended itself there.**

Sherlock vacated the hospital room and walked to the waiting room where his children were waiting apprehensively with their Uncle John. Ethan was cuddling his teddy tightly and Maddie was swinging her legs back and forth in anticipation. Raising his index finger to his lips to keep his children from shouting his name, he made his way over to them.

His face was red, tear tracks dried on his cheeks and there was a bright smile plastered on his lips.

"Come with me," He whispered, holding out his hands, one for each child, "and let's go and meet your baby sister."

Reminding the children to be quiet because both mummy and baby were very, very tired, Sherlock guided them into the maternity room where Molly was perched in the centre of the bed, leaning her entire body weight against the pillows and cradling a bundle of blankets with a pink hat poking out of one end.

Sherlock lifted Ethan up onto his hip so that he could see and stood Maddie on the chair he had been perched on the edge of during the birth, his arm wrapped tightly around her waist to keep her steady.

"A little girl?" Maddie ascertained in a whisper, turning her head so that she was looking towards the detective. At Sherlock's nod, she asked; "what's her name, daddy?"

"Charlotte." Sherlock whispered back.

"Charlotte." Ethan echoed quietly, his eyes fixed on the minutes-old baby. "I'm a big brother."

Molly smiled tiredly at their children and Sherlock pressed a kiss to each of their foreheads.

 **Thank you, again, for reading.**

 **Please review.**

 **I hope to get back into regularly updating now.**

 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


	18. Chapter 18

**When I wrote this story it was, essentially, a continuous train of thought. I'm not 100% sure how it is going to come out, but here it is. The next chapter of Maddie and Ethan.  
I can't remember if I have already mentioned or not, but if not I'm going to now – these stories are in no kind of order. Times, ages and even people are going to change often but they will all revolve around Sherlock, Molly and their little family.  
As always, I apologise for any mistakes.**

Sherlock paced the hallway. His hands were steepled below his chin, as they usually were. But there was something different about him. He was slouched slightly, his usually perfect posture affected as though something was physically pushing down his shoulders and preventing him from standing up straight. His eyes were red and watery, as though he had been crying, but his cheeks were unaffected. His lips were turned down into a pout as he paced frantically, rubbing his hands together.

He waited restlessly for his wife, only relaxing slightly when she appeared through the double doors just ahead of him, running into his arms. There were tears on her cheeks. Clearly, she hadn't taken too well to the information either. But he had no news to tell her. Nothing to calm her now.

And he really needed to _know._

Because, on the other side of the door he was pacing in front of was his little girl. On a hospital bed. Fighting for her life. And he didn't know why. And he didn't know her chances. And he didn't know _anything_. And he _hated not knowing_.

He couldn't get the image out of his head of his little girl hooked up to all sorts of machinery. He couldn't help but worry that _he_ might be the cause of all this. What if she'd accidentally eaten an experiment or what if she'd thought his pretty red chemicals were actually Cherry Ade, her favourite drink that he was _constantly_ telling Molly was bad for her?

What if his little girl didn't make it and it was his fault?

He could feel his own hands shaking as he crushed his wife, flush, against his chest. Hoping that, somehow, comforting her would comfort him. But it wasn't. It wasn't working because Sherlock didn't have the answers and a Sherlock without answers was an angry, upset Sherlock. And when those answers regarded his own baby girl, then he was almost inconsolable.

He could feel the tears rolling down his own cheeks. It definitely wasn't working. And he couldn't calm Molly if he couldn't calm himself. And he wouldn't be able to calm himself if he didn't get those _answers_.

He could hear something – it sounded like a low humming. He pulled himself from his thoughts. It was Molly. Speaking. She was staring up at him, one hand on his cheek, wiping away his tears. The other wrapped around his frame, resting on the small of his back. She knew what was going through his head and she was trying to stop his train of thought before it became too much for him to cope with.

And it seemed Sherlock's panic was over. Because a few moments later, a blue clad nurse arrived beside him asking for the Holmes family. And he was a Holmes.

The nurse's words were distorted to Sherlock. But he caught the ones that he needed to.

"Maddie… a full recovery… severe water infection… overnight for observation"

They could keep her overnight for observation. His little girl was going to be okay. And he wasn't the cause. Water infections were common in children and with some medication she would be back to herself in no time.

They were allowed in to see her and Sherlock, so happy that she was going to live, almost squeezed the life out of her.

Ironically.

 **Thank you for reading.**

 **ibelieveinguardianangels**


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